'Long delay' in British response to poison probe

Russia complained today about a “long delay” in the British response to a request to send investigators to London for inquiries into the poisoning of former spy Alexander Litvinenko.

The statement was the latest suggestion of tension between Britain and Russia over the probe into the death of Litvinenko, a fierce Kremlin critic who was poisoned by radioactive polonium-210 in London in November and blamed President Vladimir Putin for his death.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Mikhail Kamynin said the Prosecutor General’s Office sent a request on January 8 asking permission to dispatch investigators to London, where Russian prosecutors have said they want to visit several sites and question some 100 people, including outspoken Putin critic Boris Berezovsky.

“So far, no answer has been received,” Kamynin said in the statement. “Such a long delay in considering the Russian request causes regret, especially against the background of the readiness displayed by the Russian side for swift and constructive cooperation in this question at the professional level.”